Ever since Emerson learned to crawl, she's been off like a shot. Her two favorite things to do are to chase after Owen, our cat, and to sit by the front door looking out. I wonder what she is thinking about when she just sits there......
For a long time now, our goal was to sell the condo and then sell the house, thus being able to buy a bigger and better house. After assessing the market, we have decided to stay put in our current house for a while longer. So, after I started thinking about it as "our house" again, I started dreaming about what project I could undertake to make the house prettier (my words, not my husband's).
After a little convincing, I was given the clearance to put up a window box in the front window. Much to my dismay, this turned out to be quite a complicated project. Fortunately for me, my parents jumped in to help. My mom found the window box for 40% off and she and I went to a local garden and found flowers for 50% off! While we were flower shopping, my dad and my husband tackled the task of hanging the box. Lots of math calculations went into the process to get it hung just right!
My mom helped place the different flowers artistically....something she truly has a gift for. If it were left to me, I would have just clumped them in there!
I am so pleased with the finished product. I think it gives our house much more curb appeal and it makes me happy to see fun flowers there now. Bonus: We can see the tops of the flowers from the inside also!My parents came for a visit this weekend and while my mom and I were out, we ran across a little swimming pool. Of course we had to buy one! Emerson has spent some time at the beach, but never really in the water. She wasn't loving it at first, but then relaxed and had a blast.
Swimming with mom, Grandma, and Grandpa.
Aren't I cute in the swimsuit Grandma bought me?This afternoon Jeremy and I took Emerson to feed the ducks. (It was really just a cover so I could go to the Carter's Sidewalk Sale and buy Em cute clothes!) The ducks were actually hungry and they came really close to us. The last time I did this with Emerson, she watched the ducks LONG after all of our bread was gone and today was no exception. She loves to watch the ducks--just like her Mommy!
"Your toe looks yummy!"
It felt like we were being surrounded, but in a good way!
Emerson finally decided she liked her sunglasses enough to keep them on. Success!Jeremy and I took Emerson to the John Ball Zoo the other day. It was her first trip to a zoo, and we all had a great time! Nice weather, not too many people, animals that were visible, and of course, souvenirs!
Looking at the pelicans. 
At the petting zoo....where a goat tried to eat my bag!
Watching the monkeys with Daddy.
Loving on one of her special surprises.
It seems like these days, Emerson is growing up SO fast. A couple weeks ago she cut her first teeth...the two bottom ones at the same time. After scooting around like an inch worm for a couple weeks, last Monday she finally got the hang of real crawling. She loves getting into Owen's toys, and enjoys following him around and squealing when he comes close, her arms stretched out towards him. I can't believe that at this time last year, we were still anxiously awaiting her arrival!
Emerson playing with her shadow in the kitchen.
Wearing Daddy's glasses and looking extra smart!Yesterday we ended our nice, relaxing weekend by taking a walk.....as well as stopping by the local park. Emerson really enjoys the swings!
Yesterday, my friend Laura and I took the kids and met at the beach. We had a great day! Emerson was not thrilled with the water, but let me hold her and dunk her toes. Laura's son, John, had a blast filling his water bucket and digging holes. We enjoyed our sandwiches, goldfish, Cheerios and brownies. Laura and I have been friends since we were six years old and now it's so cool to see our kids playing together too!
Having fun in the sand.
New friends. :)About a week and a half ago, my cell phone started acting up. I took it in and they gave me a new Sim card. Problem solved-or so I thought. Last Friday it started acting up again and this time the local store said the problem was with the phone itself. They sent me to Grandville where the guy took one look at it and said, "Yup. Water damage." The source of my "water damage"......
Let's just say, "Lesson learned!"Jeremy and I decided that this was the summer to have a garage sale and get rid of many of our "treasures". But since our road broke, we knew that having a garage sale at our house was not a fruitful idea. Our friends over on the north side of town stepped up and volunteered their house. It turned out to be the perfect location! Several other families joined in to make it a multi-family sale.
The last couple weeks I've been busy tagging items while Emerson napped. When Jeremy returned from South Dakota he tackled the task of getting everything to our friends house.
The sale opened yesterday and will continue through Saturday. We spent several hours yesterday helping out (however much help I can really be while chasing Emerson!). After just one day of sales we were pleasantly surprised by how much has sold! I guess what they say is true..."One man's junk is another man's treasure!".
Lots has happened over the last week. While Jeremy was gone, I spent some time at my mom's house and my dad came to stay with me for a couple days. During my dad's stay we got so much accomplished! We fixed a spot on our kitchen wall, painted the upstairs bathroom, frosted the bathroom window and hung new curtains in the living room.
I had two surprise phone calls on Wednesday...one from our realtor and one from my college friend, Jen. The realtor asked if we'd be willing to close sooner than planned and my friend Jen wondered if she could stay with me while passing through town. The answer to both questions was an excited "Of course!".
Jen ended up staying for two nights and it was great fun. I haven't seen her in three years and we had a wonderful time catching up.
As for the closing, we scrambled to get the condo cleaned out and our closing fees in order. Yesterday was the big day...we no longer own a condo! We are now in the process of putting the finishing touches on our house and deciding when is the best time to put it in the market. We're excited for whatever may come next!
